Speaker Placement Video

[bodiezaffa]

Yet another Sumiko Master Audio Speaker Placement Video for your viewing and comment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmXJqJ4QCt0&t=0s

[metaphacts]

Originally Posted by bodiezaffa

Yet another Sumiko Master Audio Speaker Placement Video for your viewing and comment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmXJqJ4QCt0&t=0s

Wow.

Hopefully the video is not indicative of the latest thinking on "improving" on MASTERs, but simply an inexperienced speaker set up guy doing a poor job of communicating the actual process, particularly the results desired and how steps are interrelated.

To understand what MASTERs is and is not, talk to Will Kline, Sonus faber's North American Brand Ambassador.

[Poppyhome]

Originally Posted by metaphacts

Wow.

Hopefully the video is not indicative of the latest thinking on "improving" on MASTERs, but simply an inexperienced speaker set up guy doing a poor job of communicating the actual process, particularly the results desired and how steps are interrelated.

To understand what MASTERs is and is not, talk to Will Kline, Sonus faber's North American Brand Ambassador.

Bill.........wondering if you knew or know Bob Robbins?

"Something was always missing though, and Bob didn’t know what it was, or how to verbalize it. Then, about 13 years ago, he was given the opportunity to go to Sumiko in Berkeley and was trained in their magical process – Master Speaker Setup. Everything he’d been looking and listening for in audio was discovered – the emotional involvement in the music. It convinced Bob that all the talk about the importance of specs, the “criticality” of equipment interfacing, all the buzz words so popular in discussions about audio, were, for the most part, irrelevant. The most important component in any audio or theater system is the proper placement and positioning of the speakers into the listening environment. Putting the speakers where they truly belong so they don’t fight each other, so they work in total unison not only with the other speaker but also with the room, is the end all be all for optimal music reproduction in the home. It will allow the music lover to experience music played in the home with all the sensory “chills and thrills” one gets when attending a concert."

Ron

[metaphacts]

Originally Posted by Poppyhome

Bill.........wondering if you knew or know Bob Robbins?

"Something was always missing though, and Bob didn’t know what it was, or how to verbalize it. Then, about 13 years ago, he was given the opportunity to go to Sumiko in Berkeley and was trained in their magical process – Master Speaker Setup. Everything he’d been looking and listening for in audio was discovered – the emotional involvement in the music. It convinced Bob that all the talk about the importance of specs, the “criticality” of equipment interfacing, all the buzz words so popular in discussions about audio, were, for the most part, irrelevant. The most important component in any audio or theater system is the proper placement and positioning of the speakers into the listening environment. Putting the speakers where they truly belong so they don’t fight each other, so they work in total unison not only with the other speaker but also with the room, is the end all be all for optimal music reproduction in the home. It will allow the music lover to experience music played in the home with all the sensory “chills and thrills” one gets when attending a concert."

Ron

I do know Bob.

Among other duties, I was a one of the Sumiko MASTERs instructors from 1999 through 2014.

Bob came through when he was working for a retailer whose owner had more fully embraced the process than just about any other. The owner attended training in Berkeley yearly to make sure there was not something he missed or had changed. His bold demos of the effectiveness of his set up could best be described as "flying without a net." That retailer was the first of which I am aware who began selling his MASTERs expertise as a product to those who may have purchased speakers elsewhere. He has built quite a loyal client base to this day.

Some time after they parted ways, Bob began offering his version of MASTERs based set up services.

[Robc33]

Originally Posted by Poppyhome

Bill.........wondering if you knew or know Bob Robbins?

"Something was always missing though, and Bob didn’t know what it was, or how to verbalize it. Then, about 13 years ago, he was given the opportunity to go to Sumiko in Berkeley and was trained in their magical process – Master Speaker Setup. Everything he’d been looking and listening for in audio was discovered – the emotional involvement in the music. It convinced Bob that all the talk about the importance of specs, the “criticality” of equipment interfacing, all the buzz words so popular in discussions about audio, were, for the most part, irrelevant. The most important component in any audio or theater system is the proper placement and positioning of the speakers into the listening environment. Putting the speakers where they truly belong so they don’t fight each other, so they work in total unison not only with the other speaker but also with the room, is the end all be all for optimal music reproduction in the home. It will allow the music lover to experience music played in the home with all the sensory “chills and thrills” one gets when attending a concert."

Ron

I flew Bob Robbins out from Denver last year to set up my Strads. He was a nice enough gentleman, but he found the first position that the bass sounded correct, and set up both speakers from there. It is my understanding that there will be several positions that will sound good, and to experiment with them.
I have spoken to Jim Smith, and flew down to his place in Atlanta, to listen, and get some tips from him. He explained that it is a long process, and usually takes a full day. I have tried it myself for countless hours, with varied degrees of success. Bob said we were done after about an hour, maybe an hour and a half to be generous. It sounded Ok, a bit different than where I had them. So, I left them there for a few weeks, and eventually started to play with placement again.
I now have them sounding the best that I have heard in my room. They are almost 2 feet further into the room than where Bob set them up.

[metaphacts]

Originally Posted by Robc33

I flew Bob Robbins out from Denver last year to set up my Strads. He was a nice enough gentleman, but he found the first position that the bass sounded correct, and set up both speakers from there. It is my understanding that there will be several positions that will sound good, and to experiment with them.
I have spoken to Jim Smith, and flew down to his place in Atlanta, to listen, and get some tips from him. He explained that it is a long process, and usually takes a full day. I have tried it myself for countless hours, with varied degrees of success. Bob said we were done after about an hour, maybe an hour and a half to be generous. It sounded Ok, a bit different than where I had them. So, I left them there for a few weeks, and eventually started to play with placement again.
I now have them sounding the best that I have heard in my room. They are almost 2 feet further into the room than where Bob set them up.

Knowing the right questions to ask to confirm you are done can be difficult. Strads like many of the great speakers out there, get to good very quickly. However, getting to what a Strad should be is a whole different level.

Jim is correct. Allot a full day. If everything goes right you can be done much sooner. Not very likely, but possible. I say that having at one point set up as many, or possibly more Strads than anyone alive. And knowing that the final movements will not show up on typical set up measurements, though the correct movements/choice will be quite obvious.

Not sure why Bob would quit so early on your set. Even if you walk in and it is the best you have ever heard the speaker, you meticulously document that point. If after many hours or working the process ( and documenting results), you return to that point, so be it. But by then you have asked all the right questions necessary to return to that point.

Again, ymmv.

[crwilli]

What he said...

This video blog is a great example of somebody that thinks they have something valuable to say but as in most cases, (i am being kind) they don’t say anything.

[Antonmb]

Originally Posted by crwilli

What he said...

This video blog is a great example of somebody that thinks they have something valuable to say but as in most cases, (i am being kind) they don’t say anything.

Fully a third of the video is the guy pontificating on the importance of speaker positioning, and when he finally gets to it, the process is poorly and inaccurately described.

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by Antonmb

Fully a third of the video is the guy pontificating on the importance of speaker positioning, and when he finally gets to it, the process is poorly and inaccurately described.

Ya got that right, Tony!

[gadawg]

I stopped watching 5 min in. Got bored.

George